Chris Smith
Christopher Lyall Smith
Born: 15 October 1958, Durban, Natal, South Africa
Major Teams: Natal, Glamorgan, Hampshire, England.
Known As: Chris Smith
Batting Style: Right Hand Bat
Bowling Style: Right Arm Off Break
Test Debut: England v New Zealand at Lord's, 3rd Test, 1983
Latest Test: England v India at Leeds, 2nd Test, 1986
ODI Debut: England v New Zealand at Christchurch, 1st ODI, 1983/84
Latest ODI: England v Pakistan at Karachi, 2nd ODI, 1983/84
Wisden Cricketer of the Year 1984
Career Statistics:
TESTS
(including 19/06/1986)
M I NO Runs HS Ave SR 100 50 Ct St
Batting & Fielding 8 14 1 392 91 30.15 29.83 0 2 5 0
O M R W Ave BBI 5 10 SR Econ
Bowling 17 4 39 3 13.00 2-31 0 0 34.0 2.29
ONE-DAY INTERNATIONALS
(including 26/03/1984)
M I NO Runs HS Ave SR 100 50 Ct St
Batting & Fielding 4 4 0 109 70 27.25 45.41 0 1 0 0
O M R W Ave BBI 4w 5w SR Econ
Bowling 6 0 28 2 14.00 2-8 0 0 18.0 4.66
FIRST-CLASS
(1977/78 - 1991)
M I NO Runs HS Ave 100 50 Ct St
Batting & Fielding 269 466 60 18028 217 44.40 47 88 176 0
Balls M R W Ave BBI 5 10 SR Econ
Bowling 4457 140 2685 50 53.70 5-69 1 0 89.1 3.61
LIST A LIMITED OVERS
(1980 - 1991)
M I NO Runs HS Ave 100 50 Ct St
Batting & Fielding 214 197 39 6700 159 42.40 11 42 38 0
O R W Ave BBI 4w 5w SR Econ
Bowling 28.3 114 10 11.40 3-32 0 0 17.1 4.00
- Explanations of First-Class and List A status courtesy of the ACS.
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Profile:
Chris Smith was born of English parents in Durban, South Africa in October
1958. Keen to pursue a career in cricket and frustrated by the
apartheid-derived ban on international sport with South Africa, he left to
try his luck in Britain having previously toured the country with Kingsmead
Mynahs (essentially Natal U25s) in 1976.
Smith made his first-class debut in 1977-78 for Natal B aged just 18, and
continued to represent them over the next six seasons. He played for
Glamorgan in 1979, before moving to Hampshire for 1980. That season he
topped 1,000 first-class runs as their overseas player, but his chances were
then limited by the presence of Gordon Greenidge and Malcolm Marshall at the
club. He captained the Second XI in 1981 and made only occasional
appearances for the first team.
Finally qualifying to play for England in 1983, Smith scored heavily for
his county that season, including 193 against Derbyshire, and was called up
for the Third Test at Lord's. His Test career got off to a disastrous start
when he was trapped lbw first ball by the great Sir Richard Hadlee (and had
to endure the ranting of an MCC member who thought he belonged back in South
Africa), but a patient 43 in the second innings promised better things. He
performed well on the subsequent tours of Pakistan and New Zealand;
averaging 40 in the five Tests he played in, and recording his Test-best
score of 91 at Auckland and hitting 66 in Faisalabad. He also played his
only four one-day internationals on the trip, top-scoring with 70 in his
second game in Wellington, and leading England to victory. A useful
off-spinner, though not in the all-rounder class, he weighed in with some
useful wickets in both forms of the game.
1984 was a disappointing year (though it began with him being named as
one of Wisden's Cricketers of the Year for his efforts over the previous 12
months) and Smith was unable to retain his Test place, though 2,000
first-class runs in 1985 saw him on to the England B tour to Sri Lanka. He
did well there and won a Test recall for the Second Test against India at
Leeds next summer (1986), but performed modestly as England were well
beaten.
Blond-haired, with a thick moustache, 5'11" and 13 stone, Smith is best
remembered at Hampshire for the assiduous way he worked at his game. He
would be the first to admit that he lacked some of the talent of his younger
brother, Robin, who forged a successful career in Chris' footsteps with both
Hampshire and England, but a good technique that won praise from Geoff
Boycott saw Chris develop into one of the most consistent opening batsmen in
county cricket. A much less flamboyant player than his brother, he could
still hit the ball with great power and remained a force at county level,
hitting a career-best 217 against Warwickshire in 1987 and taking best
bowling figures of 5-69 against Sussex in 1988.
At the end of the 1991 season, which saw Hampshire win the NatWest
Trophy, Chris Smith retired slightly prematurely to take-up a position as
Chief Executive of the WACA in Perth. A keen golf and squash player, he
combined his cricket career with several other business interests and was
one of few county players to drive a Porsche. An aunt, Jackie Mercer, was a
leading South African golfer while his grandfather, Vernon Lyall Shearer
played for Natal. (George Dobell, Copyright CricInfo 2001)
Last Updated: Monday, 19-Aug-2002 21:01:32 GMT
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